Neverland (This One Time, at Summer Camp)
by Kado-Kattsune
Summary: It was supposed to be simple. Helping out at a summer camp for the elementary kids as a junior counselor for a few weeks. Unfortunately the universe has other plans for Nishijima Minami and her seven camp kids.
1. Summertime Blues

**A/N:** Kado back at it again with the long titles! I wanted to have this ready for Odaiba Day but work had other plans.

Kado Notes:

*So I don't know how long the summer camp was supposed to be and as far as I know it never says anywhere. I know some Japanese elementary schools do an overnight camping thing and I know when my sisters went to (church) camp it was a week long so I just went with the assumption that it was going to be a week or more because of the tents. In the grand scheme of things it doesn't really matter.

*Always pack extra socks and underwear when going on trips, just in case.

*I'm still not sure how to refer to the Adventure kids. I learned the Dub names first and it's what I default to but this is Japan. On the other hand the dub names could almost count as nicknames, especially since they're all so young and I could treat them like that? Opinions?

*Can you spot the extremely small and quick Haikyuu! cameo?

* * *

Nishijima Minami woke to the taste of salt on her lips and the sound of waves fading from her ears. She groaned, rolling onto her stomach to bury her face into the pillow. It conformed to her face, making it difficult to breathe but it smelled like her fabric softener; the familiar scent chasing away the last vague remnants of her dream.

 _'_ _It's summer_ ,' the girl reasoned as she nuzzled her face into the soft fabric of her pillowcase, ' _guess that's the perfect time to dream of the beach.'_

Mina shivered, despite the sweat sticking her hair to her face, and pulled her covers closer. Nothing remained of the dream now but the uncomfortable pit in her stomach made her think it had not been a fun beach visit. Soon the need to breathe outweighed her contemplation on a fleeting dream and Mina lifted herself from the safety of her pillow and covers with an exaggerated gasp for air. Needless dramatics aside Mina dropped her feet to the floor and took a moment to stretch her arms above her head.

"Well," her hands dropped to her head, fingers attempting to pry some of her sweat-stuck hair from her face. Between that and bedhead her ash brown hair must look more like some desert bush; but that was a problem for after-breakfast-Mina. "Guess it's time to face the day."

"Minami!" Her mother called from the kitchen, nearly as soon as the bedroom door had opened. "I hope you're packed and ready. Mr. Fujiyama is already here."

"Um," the girl shuffled towards the kitchen, caught between walking and pulling on her socks. " _What_?"

The day, it seemed, had decided to face her with her former elementary homeroom teacher seated at the kitchen table; complete with a plate of breakfast and the morning newspaper as if he had replaced her father in this version of reality. Mina's hand wavered between her pajama shirt (stolen from her brother years before and showing just as much wear) and her bed-head as if there was still some hope of saving her dignity.

Catching sight of her over the top of the paper Fujiyama-sensei smiled. "Good morning, Minami-chan. Are you all set for summer camp?"

"What?" she repeated, wondering if she hadn't just fallen back asleep face down in the pillow and the lack of oxygen was giving her strange dreams.

"Don't be rude," her mother scolded, frowning from her place at the table. "You agreed to help with the summer camp for the elementary kids. Did you forget?"

 _'_ _I didn't forget,'_ Mina bit the inside of her cheek to keep her expression neutral. ' _You just volunteered me for something and then didn't tell me about it.'_

Outloud she said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Fujiyama. It must have slipped my mind, but it won't take me long to get ready." Mina gave her best apologetic smile and backed out of the room before another issue could be raised.

The door to her bedroom shut with a quiet _click_ and the girl took a moment to breathe; forehead resting against the wood of her door and shoulders rising and falling as if the exaggerated motion would bring relaxation to her sooner. Suddenly all of after-breakfast-Mina's problems were right now problems. Right now problems with a time limit and roughly two to three weeks of unplanned obligations.

"Okay," Mina began, stepping away from the door. "Okay, okay. Clothes. We'll pack and find something to wear and then deal with...this." She waved a hand in the vague direction of the chaotic cloud of her bedhead. "Where's that duffle bag?"

The duffle bag had been tossed into a back corner of her closet, still sporting spots of dust from the track and the white 'Odaiba Middle Track & Field' embroidery was now more gray than anything. Mina frowned and gave the bag a few good shakes.

"At least it doesn't smell."

The girl tossed the duffle bag onto her bed and began rummaging through her drawers and closet to find what she wanted to pack.

"Jeans but also shorts in case the day is hot. A couple of shirts and extra socks and underwear just in case. Another pair of shoes? No, that's excessive. I still need to fit toiletries and - will I need a swimsuit?" Mina paused her hurried tirade to consider. Her time was ticking away and she still needed to change and attempt to look like a proper fifteen year-old and not living underbrush. "No, forget it. I don't have time to find the stupid thing anyway."

The girl clicked her tongue and gave the duffle bag a hard shake to settle the contents and grabbed her clothes for the day. Tucking them under her arm Mina opened her bedroom door once again and power-walked to the bathroom, lest she be seen again by her mother and former teacher and her wavering dignity took another heavy blow.

Thankfully if anyone was looking her way as she hurried to the bathroom she didn't notice. Inside the safety of the bathroom Mina thought longingly of a shower and how it would guarantee well-behaved hair. Grumbling to herself the girl stepped out of her pajamas and carefully folded them for when they were added to her duffle bag. She pulled on her clothes quickly, brushed her teeth, and washed off her face.

Mina picked up the hairbrush as if she were preparing to do battle. "Alright. Time to fix...all this."

Ten minutes later and the tangled bush of her hair had been beaten back into something much more normal looking. Internally she cursed the cowlicks that her brother seemed to think counted as a hairstyle and ran the brush through her hair one last time for good measure. Mina caught her own eyes in the reflection of the mirror; a stray bead of water trailed down the curve of her cheek.

It hit the porcelain with an abnormally loud _splash_.

The sound seemed to echo around the suddenly too-small bathroom. It felt impossible to tear her eyes away from her own reflection; the light brown of her eyes seeming to reflect impossible colors. She could hear the ocean from her dream, feel the ice cold ebb and flow threatening to pull her...

Where?

 _Something was calling_.

"Minami!" Her mother's voice called, concerned. The moment, whatever it had been, shattered around her as the girl jolted. The hairbrush clattered against the countertop, nearly knocking the toothbrushes into the sink. "Aren't you ready yet?"

"Almost!" Mina scrambled to gather her needed toiletries, piling them on top of her pajamas and gathering everything into her arms. She almost walked face first into the closed door as she turned, instead smacking into one of her brother's dumb sweatshirts hanging on the door hook to air dry.

 _Bear With Me_ read the font, surrounded by the outline of a grizzly bear, as if asking for her forgiveness. Her nose scrunched, though the scent of the fabric softener was pleasant, and Mina yanked the sweatshirt from the hook and added it to her pile.

" _Minami_! The time!"

"I'm coming!" The brunette bit back a sigh as she finally left the bathroom and headed back to her room. Pajamas and toiletries went into the duffle bag but the stolen sweatshirt she tied around her waist. Mina zipped the bag with perhaps more force than was required and did a last minute scan of her room for anything she had missed. Her eyes found her preferred summertime bag, hanging across the back of her desk chair. She snatched it up and added some of her snack stash to the contents as breakfast was becoming a fleeting impossibility.

Shouldering both bags Mina shuffled back into the kitchen just before her mother called for her again. "I'm ready."

"Is that your brother's sweatshirt?" her mother asked, looking over from where she was setting the breakfast dishes out to dry.

"No," Mina answered, turning to face her former teacher. "I hope we're not running late."

"Sorry to rush you so early in the morning, Minami-chan," Mr. Fujiyama offered an apologetic smile. "Would you like to eat something first or-?"

The girl shook her head, adjusting the straps of the bags on her shoulder. "I'll be fine. But we should probably get going; you know how elementary school kids are."

The teacher stifled a laugh as he folded the newspaper and stood from the kitchen table. "Yes and you're so much older."

"Do you want my help or not?" Mina said before she could think better of it. She caught the disapproving look forming on her mother's face and promptly turned on her heel to power-walk to the doorway to step into her shoes.

It didn't save her. Like some sort of animal spurred on by the movement her mother followed. " _Minami_! I'm surprised at you!"

In the end it took another ten minutes before they were out the door, Mrs. Nishijima using the time to scold her daughter for such improper behavior. When they finally piled into Mr. Fujiyama's car Mina felt as if they were running inexorbantly late. It pulled at an anxiety she wasn't aware of, leaving her feeling fidgety and nervous.

"- yet?"

Mina blinked, tearing her attention away from the car window and the moving scenery outside it. Her focus had been caught by two boys walking down the sidewalk- one absorbed in his gameboy and the other with horrible bedhead and a brochure, talking animatedly to his friend. They were having a normal summer. "Sorry, what?"

"Have you decided on a high school yet?" Mr. Fujiyama repeated.

"Oh! Yes, I have." Mina answered, twisting her fingers around the strap of her bag. "If everything goes well on the entrance exams."

"I wouldn't worry too much," her former teacher assured her. "You've always been a good student." He laughed, as if remembering some private joke. "Actually you remind me a bit of one of the older elementary kids. You'll meet him at the camp. He's a bit jumpy though, so try not to startle him."

"Thank...you?" the girl said slowly, unsure of how to take the statement. It was certainly meant as a complement...wasn't it?

Only by the time Mr. Fujiyama pulled his car into the parking lot of Odaiba Elementary, with the gaggle of elementary students and several long buses, did Mina's nerves begin to settle. The children, however, seemed to be growing restless. Energy was spreading through the throng of children tired of waiting, making them shift and shuffle.

"Well," Mr. Fujiyama began as he parked the car. "Best get them on the bus before they riot."

Mina chewed on her bottom lip, watching the children. "Won't it be worse to put them in an inclosed space?"

"Not much of a choice now, if we're to get them to camp." the teacher opened his car door with a flourish, gesturing to the children. "Come, Minami-chan. Adventure awaits!"

"That seems a bit dramatic, I think." Mina muttered, though the corner of her lips curved upward, and she followed the teacher out of the car and across the parking lot.

"Sensei!" One of the children called out. From this distance he looked like little more than a fluff of brown hair and a streak of blue clothes and goggles? "It's about time you showed up!"

 _'_ _I did make him late!'_ The thought was nearly enough to ramp her nerves back into overdrive with guilt and regret until one of the other kids- blonde and in green-interrupted.

"It hasn't even been that long," blonde kid frowned, watching the first kid from the corner of his very blue eye. "Can't you wait for ten minutes?"

"Now, now," Mr. Fujiyama waved a hand as he approached, sensing conflict as the two boys stared each other down. "There's still plenty of time for camp fun. But I had to grab an extra set of hands."

At this the elementary homeroom teacher presented Mina like a game show assistant and she was the prize behind door number one. Or maybe the discount prize from the skeptical way the children watched her.

"Um, hi?" Mina offered as she approached the gathering of students. It felt like beginning of the year introductions only now, thanks to Mr. Fujiyama's excitable declaration, everyone seemed to be paying attention to her.

There was a general murmuring of greetings and a few confused looks exchanged but the children largely seemed to accept the addition of a stranger.

"She's so tall," A girl outside of Mina's line of sight whispered. "She must be in high school."

Her burning ears were hidden behind the strands of her ash brown but there was nothing to be done about the color creeping onto her cheeks. Mina opened her mouth to respond, decided better of it, and turned on the ball of her foot towards the bus. "Well, it looks like we're the last ones. Better get the luggage into the bus so we can head out."

The words left her mouth in a jumble, matching the too-fast movement of her power walk away from the situation.

"Yeah!" the goggle wearing kid from earlier cheered. "Let's get this camping trip started!"


	2. Of Kids and Camp

The sounds and chatter of a bus full of excited children became like white noise after a few miles. Mina yawned, suddenly reminded of her fitful sleep the night before and hurried awakening that morning. She sighed as she remembered her original morning plans had consisted of a leisurely breakfast and at least two cups of tea before she even thought of doing anything productive. The brunette hunkered down into the bus seat, shifting until she found a position that was almost comfortable, and decided if she didn't get breakfast this morning then she deserved a nap.

The rumble of the bus on the road and the white noise of children talking was somehow relaxing, lulling her to sleep faster than she had imagined.

The sound of waves. The smell of salt. Mina opened her eyes to the dappled light of underwater, her hair and clothes floating around her with the motion of the water but she had no trouble breathing. The water was dark despite the light filtering down, almost as if the world had gone greyscale. Even the light itself seemed cold and dim.

She blinked several times but the color did not return. Mina sighed inwardly and looked around, trying to find anything other than cold grey waters. For several long moments there was nothing but the sound of water and her own heartbeat; she was alone in the most boring dream imaginable.

Then something moved. It's long, undulating body a dark spot in the grey waters. Mina blinked again, mind struggling to comprehend the sheer size of the thing. The girl wondered how she had missed it before.

The snake (dragon?) opened it's four eyes; the only points of color in the world. The red eyes, each seeming to be as large as she was tall, swiveled, searching. The turn of its head swirled the current about her, pulling at her hair and almost tugging her stolen sweatshirt free. Yet it didn't push her back from the spot she stood- floated. Mina swallowed as the eyes found her small form in the water.

' The only time I've been small in years ,' a distant, almost delirious part of her mind thought, ' And it doesn't do me any good .'

Something rumbled through the water, thrumming in her chest like a heavy bass beat. A voice: The snake-dragon's voice. "Y̴̬̰̪͍̓O̸̡̩̅̓U̵͍̎͂̚͝ ̶̯͍͑S̸̢̤̭̋͋ͅH̸̨̫̟̞͛̇͊͛͠O̵͉͕͊̎͒͑Ư̵̙̠̮̊͒L̶̫̝̦͝ͅD̸̤̩̈́̒ ̶̢̗͍̫̑͂̈̐͘N̷̛͚͉͗͆͐͝O̵̳̻̫̲̜̓͌͂͘͘T̵̲̹̟͐͒ ̷̡̟̃̐̽͗̚B̸̢̜͚̩̣͝E̸͕̐ͅ ̵͛ͅH̸̤̣͓̓E̶̙͖̳̓̏̚R̷͔͝E̶̹̠͑͌͛̚ ̷̐͆̑͜C̵̢̮̩͠ͅH̴̦͚̦͎́͆I̸̙͓͌̑̎L̴̥̤̣̩͊̿͝D̵̺̗͖͖͓̓."

Mina woke so suddenly and so easily she was left to wonder if she had fallen asleep at all. It had felt like she had simply blinked but the stiffness in her back told her otherwise. She pushed herself into a proper sitting position, back popping. The scenery was still moving past outside the window, leaving the girl with no idea how long she had been asleep for.

"Good morning, Minami-chan," the cheerful voice of Mr. Fujiyama chirped, a slip of paper sliding into her line of sight. "This is the list of the kids you'll help keep an eye on. I didn't want to wake you but I thought you might want to look it over before we arrived."

Mina blinked blearily, trying to make sense of the words on the paper in front of her. The teacher gave the paper a slight jiggle before she remembered to take it from him. There were eight names on the paper, in a neat numerical list, though the last one had been crossed out.

Mr. Fujiyama leaned in closer, whispering conspiratorially to the girl. "Now don't tell anyone, but I gave you some of my favorite kids."

She forced a smile, still feeling unfocused and disconnected from the reality in front of her, "Playing favorites?"

The homeroom teacher pressed a finger to his lips and retreated back to his seat with all the subtlety of, well, a grown man trying to slink through a crowded bus aisle without tripping on luggage, a child, or stray snack boxes. It was as impressive as it was ridiculous. It helped to ground her in the moment, to push the weird dream from her mind.

Mina dropped her attention back to the list in her hand. Her grip had begun to wrinkle the edges of the paper and she had to make a conscious effort to relax her hold. On closer inspection there was a post-it note on the top corner of the paper, the note about the crossed off name, Yagami Hikari-chan. According to the note she had caught a nasty fever and her parents hadn't wanted her to make the trip. Mr. Fujiyama had doodled a little frowning face at the bottom of the post-it and Mina found herself mirroring the expression. This girl must have been looking forward to the trip.

When the bus finally pulled to a stop at the campgrounds Mina felt like herself again. A version of herself that was ready to be off the bus and walk around in the fresh air and stretch her legs, but herself nonetheless. Mina took a moment to stretch her arms languidly above her head, soaking in the warm sunshine like a content housecat. The strap of her satchel bag slipped from her shoulder, landing against her neck and threatening to make breathing difficult.

With a sigh Mina lowered her arms and adjusted the strap of her bag. The shuffle of children and luggage being removed from the bus meant there was work to be done; she could play housecat and lounge in the sun later. Maybe. "Kido group!" she called, raising the arm holding her list as a visual marker. "I need the Kido group with me, please!"

The first kid came scrambling out of the crowd, suddenly urgent. His dark hair was cut short, though it stuck out on one side. Either style or the same cowlick curse Mina suffered, she wasn't sure. It didn't seem quite intentional. His glasses had been knocked askew in his hurry to remove himself from the gathering of other children. He also seemed to be the only one in the entire camp group wearing a sweater vest. In all reality the boy was dressed more for summer school than time in the woods, as if he had gotten on the wrong bus and was now missing his cram school. He was, at least, wearing sensible outdoor shoes.

"Sorry," he panted, taking a moment to straighten his glasses and look the taller girl over. "Sorry. I didn't know we were grouping up yet. I'm Kido Joe."

"Great," Mina chirped, "Where's the rest of your group?"

Joe hesitated, glancing around the empty space surrounding them. He fiddled with his glasses again, needlessly straightening and pushing them up his nose. "I don't...know."

"Oh, well, that's-"

"Here we are!" Another voice called out, feminine and bright but tinged with annoyance. The girl that appeared had a friendly face, bright eyed and with short hair right on the edge between red and brown. She was dressed more for camping or at least a summer of running around. Sleeveless bright yellow shirt, jeans, shoes made for running. The weirdest combination of red gloves and a strange blue hat that Mina could only assume was some new trend. Somehow it added to the girl's charm.

She waved with one hand, the other gripping the back of a boy's shirt and forcing him to walk backwards to keep up. Mina recognized him as the kid with the big hair and goggles from before she had gotten on the bus. He seemed to prefer the sporty look to go with his goggles, tan, and, yes, gloves. "Ow, hey, Sora!" he complained, stumbling when the girl came to a stop. "You didn't have to drag me."

The girl, Sora, frowned but released her hold on the sporty boy's shirt. "You weren't going to come otherwise." To Mina she added "Sorry about Taichi. Once he gets something in his head you can't change his mind."

"I just wanted to get a good camping spot," Taichi protested with a huff. Then he blinked, realization washing over him. "Hey, we lost Izzy."

"I'm over here." The speaker was another boy, this one short for his age. Mina's eyes might have swept right over his head on first glance if it wasn't for his rather glaring combination of bright orange and yellow. There was some sort of small backpack on his shoulders and his expression read as 'unwilling but resigned'. He seemed about as outdoorsy as the sweater vest kid, if Mina were honest. "Izumi Koushiro, but you can call me 'Izzy' if you'd like."

"And I'm Tai!" Goggles added with extra enthusiasm.

Sora sighed, eyeing the brunette beside her, "That's not even much different than your actual name."

"But it sounds cool," the boy insisted, unfazed.

' Ah, to have the confidence of an eleven year old ,' Mina thought wistfully, glancing through the names on her list. "Looks like we're still missing a few people."

"We're here!" A small voice called, full of excitement. "We're here! See, big bro, I told you the group was over here."

It was the most adorable little eight year old Mina had seen to date, all dressed in green and with a backpack nearly as large as he was waved in their direction, smile as bright as the sun above.

"Y-yeah," Two steps behind him, as if being dragged by the non-waving hand gripped tightly to his own, was the blonde kid with the blue, blue eyes Mina remembered from that morning. He seemed much more awkward and uncomfortable than he had outside of the bus and she had a sneaking suspicion it wasn't just that he was wearing a turtleneck in this heat. "Good job, TK."

"Hi!" the smaller blonde chirped, stopping directly in front of Mina before he finally released his brother's hand. "I'm Takaishi Takeru, but you can call me TK. You're really tall and my brother thinks you're cute."

"TK!" the older boy bristled in surprise, closing his hands around his brother's mouth an instant too late.

Mina smiled as TK squirmed himself free, taking the moment to glance at her list. "So you must be Ishida Yamato." ' Different last names ,' she noted absently.

"Matt is fine," he answered, making one last mostly playful grab for Takeru's backpack as the boy scooted out of his reach. "You don't have to be formal."

"But we should be formal," Joe insisted with more conviction than Mina had expected from someone who seemed so nervous. "Since you're our senpai."

"Oh, no," Mina said, waving a hand. "There's no need for that. It's only for a little while and I just left Odaiba Middle, so I'm not even in the joint school system anymore."

"All the more reason!" Joe said, voice rising in an octave as he seemed to realize the older girl was even more senpai then he first assumed. "Nishijima-sen-"

"Joe," the brunette interrupted, hoping she had put enough insistence behind her voice to stomp out the argument. "I would really prefer you to call me Mina."

"But-"

"We still need to find Tachikawa Mimi," Mina said, speaking just louder than was necessary and turning away from the bespectacled boy before he could continue his insisting. "So let's do that."

"There she is," Koushiro answered, pointing to a group of girls still by the bus. "Mimi-san! Mimi!"

A girl all in pink looked up from a group of girls still gathered by the door to the bus. Her outfit had a very Western American look to it with a matching pink cowboy hat and light brown gloves.

' Again with the gloves .' Mina noted with a frown. ' Is it a new trend? Should I have gotten gloves too? '

She spoke with her friends a few moments longer before trotting over to the group with her big canvas bag. She looked confused for a moment before something clicked and she smiled. "Oh, are meeting up already?"

"And that's everyone," Mina said, folding the list and putting it in her back pocket. "Fantastic. Once again, I'm Nishijima Minami, call me Mina, I insist. And since we're the first group to be all gathered, let's go get the best camping spot!"

Taichi cheered and took off at a full sprint, making Mina regret her word choice.

"There he goes," Sora stated, sounding resigned.

"There he goes," Mina agreed, deflating. "We should...probably go after him."


End file.
